sister act: cupcakes and butterfly cakes

although there are four of us in this house, it's very rare that we are all in at the same time. we all have different work schedules and social commitments, so when i get to spend some time with my siblings it has become precious (especially as now we see each other less, there is less fighting!)

therefore it was really great to spend some time with my sister the other weekend and have a catch up (mostly moaning about being working girls).

we kept things simple with a basic sponge mix. this is such a good thing to have memorised - you want to work in 2oz measurements and for every 2oz of ingredients you need one egg. i think i made 8oz because i wanted two batches of cakes so it went something like this:

8oz of self raising flour
8oz caster sugar
8oz butter or baking spread (softened)
2 tsps baking powder
4 eggs
splash of vanilla essence

once you've grasped this basic recipe you can work wonders with it. for example if you are making it into a chocolate cake, sub out some of the flour for cocoa powder and add a little more baking powder.

it can be flavoured in different ways too, although vanilla provides a good base for staple sponge.

i always go all in one with this, literally throw it all in a bowl and whisk together! add a splash of milk if it's a little dry. it always comes out moist and spongy, a fail safe result!

 in it all goes, you're looking for the consistency below: nice and smooth, leaving the trails of the whisk

the other great thing about cup/fairy cakes is how quickly they cook (although not that great when you get distracted playing games on your phone and have to run to the oven...) so you can whip up a few batches in no time. the fun part is what you do after this

 pretty cases are a must for cupcakes, these are from tesco

so i had two things i wanted to try out here:

firstly was a beautiful piping set that my friend louise got me for my birthday and i hadn't actually got around to using. i forgot to take a photo so i will put one up when i remember! it's a really professional set and gave great results.

 my piping skills are definitely something i want to work on (as well as my photography, apologies for the out of focus images!) - in particular starting at the edge of the cake, rather than trying to backfill this in!

 

 so much concentration!

 

cheeky baking selfie!

and with that photo i introduce my sister, the widge to my nen (just roll with the weird nicknames). we paired up to make that british tea time classic - butterfly cakes.

instead of using a berry jam, i wanted to use the passionfruit curd i had bought at a national trust property (history nerd forever). this added a zing to the cakes that would have been missing otherwise, and contrasted well with the sweet buttercream. it was a simple yet effective way to update a classic combo.

i'm a sucker for that packaging too

 scooping out the insides to make the wings

 my glamorous assistant whipping up the buttercream

 production line assembled: i was in charge of cutting and wing placement, widge provided the fillings

 just look at the colour on that curd!

 

 and the finished result

these went down a treat in the office. everyone loved the zing from the passionfruit and they were a perfect little mid morning or afternoon pick me up!

i'd love to see what you guys do with your basic sponge recipes! share your pictures on facebook or twitter

love,

nen

carmelised red onion

is that not possibly the best blog title? because carmelised red onion has to be one of the best things ever. sweet and sticky with an onion tang - excuse me while i wipe up some drool...

so the other weekend when i was looking for baking inspiration, the john whaite recipe for rosemary and carmelised onion fougasse jumped straight out at me. after all it combined those beautiful onions with that other pleasure: bread. the recipe is actually available on his website if you fancy recreating this one yourselves.

in my version i substituted the rosemary for lemon thyme, as i was using this for another recipe so that probably changed the dynamic a bit but nothing major.

so on to those onions...

 

 

 it's times like this i really wish photos could convey smell!

so soft, a beautiful colour and flavoured with balsamic vinegar

it's been a long time since i've made bread, so it was very satisfying to get my hands on some dough and give it a good knead. i forget how therapeutic it can be (especially when envisaged as the person/task that is grating on you...)

 

 

shaping these rolls (although feel that term is a little underwhelming for what they are) was slightly fiddly - i can see that a dough scraper would have come in use here (hello christmas list...). but i persevered with my knife (probably making a load of scratches on my mum's worktop, whoopsie) to get the beautiful leaf shape.

 

the recipe states to spray water in the oven when you place the bread in to bake. having no spray bottle around, besides those containing antibacterial spray, i skipped out this step. which was quite possibly a mistake as the bread was a tad on the dry side - so next time i will do as i am told! i think maybe also they could use a little wash, maybe just a bit of milk? i feel mine just look dull compared to john's!

mine (above) and john's (below - just in case clarification was needed!) - something to work towards!

 

 all concerns over the appearance of the bread were soon forgotten as i tore off chunks and spread butter on them.

the flavour is really great from those slow cooked onions. it's such a great feeling making your own bread and it made monday's packed lunch far more interesting.

let me know if you try and make these yoursevles - i'd love to hear how you get on!

as always, keep up to date with other news and pictures via facebook and twitter.
bread baking red onion fougasse homemade blog
love,
nen
x

workplace treats - rhubard and white chocolate tray bake

working in an office all day, answering the same queries can be a bit draining. therefore baked goods are a perfect way to keep morale up. last week i presented the chocolate and lime tart; this week the chocolate and fruit theme continues with a rhubarb and white chocolate tray bake. once again a john whaite recipe!

tray bakes are just fantastic, so simple to make and put together, great for transport and guaranteed to feed many.

the reaction in the office has been very appreciative - they said the sponge is light and moist (just how i like it). they've all promised they'll be queuing at the door when i open my bakery!

here are photos from the making of the cake:

chopping up the rhubarb

 

 creaming together the butter, sugar and thyme

 mixing up the batter - i did find that when i added the eggs to the butter/sugar mix, it did split a bit, however all was fine once the dry ingredients were added

adding the rhubard and chocolate chips (with a few accidentally falling in my mouth...)

 a lovely gooey, chunky batter ready for the oven

 

 fresh from the oven

this is a really moreish cake - it's so hard not to gobble three slices in one go! i love cake with fruit in, it adds a lovely contrast to the sponge and a fantastic burst of flavour. i'm not convinced of the impact of the thyme, we certainly couldn't pick it out in the office - but i'm sure it's one of those instances where you would notice a difference if it wasn't there! so overall a very successful bake, and definitely one i'll be making again.

coming up next time: another john whaite recipe (i'll branch out soon, promise... maybe...) - this time bread!

love,

nen

x

autumn comforts - apple and blackberry pie

after a lovely drawn out late summer, autumn is firmly upon us. i love this season; i have been far too excited to whip out all my berry and jewel shade dresses, don my boots and prepare for knitwear making a return. crisp walks around the park are great for clearing the head and lungs. and, more pertinently for this blog, baking becomes super comforting.

autumn is all about using the fruits of the season, filling sponges, hearty pies and warming spices. this is comfort food at its best and works wonders to chase away any approaching winter blues.

so when my mum informed me that she had some blackberries that needed using, i did not have to be asked twice to whip up a homely apple and blackberry pie.

ingredients ready to go

with this being a lazy sunday bake, i opted to buy premade pastry because i am impatient and wanted pie!

i used a jamie oliver recipe as a rough guideline - but instead of using stem ginger i used ground ginger and cinnamon (copiously!)

 first job - peeling and chopping all the apples!

melting butter and sugar together, sinfully good

 

 

 the apples are slowly stewed down, with the blackberries being added near the end

 

a lovely pink colour develops as your stir the blackberries through

 

 

 gcse art skills coming in to play...

 and after a while in the oven...

sweet, sweet pie!

this recipe is really easy to follow and do, which is perfect for those times where you just want something tasty as quickly as possible! serve with cream, ice cream or custard (or perhaps an indulgent combo?!) and enjoy after a sunday roast, in front of the fire... perfect!

love,

nen

x